Lab-Grown Teeth
Finally, a new transplant technique that's got teeth!This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science saying, or at least one that can make teeth. Organ transplants are often rejected by recipients. They're viewed as foreign bodies--and basically ARE. So why not grow a new organ in place? An organ like a tooth? And yeah, it is one. A team of Japanese scientists identified the raw materials of tooth construction, from different cell types to the instructive genes involved. They packed the ingredients into a poppy seed-sized bead, planted it in the upper jawbone of a mouse with a missing tooth, and--? The Franken-molar grew normally. It was the right size AND shape-- Its rugged surface fit like a glove with its counterpart on the bottom jaw. It was also as tough as a normal tooth and packed with nerves and blood vessels! It was a fully functional rendition of rodent dentition! The method may eventually be applied to sprout other organs, like kidneys. But in the meantime, not only can mice throw away their dentures, they no longer HAVE to let. . . the cheese stand alone.
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